Easy Graham Banana Squares - Vegan, Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free Graham Cracker Options

Easy Graham Banana or Pumpkin Squares - Vegan &/or Gluten-Free

Graham Banana Squares are moist, reminiscent of a slightly firmer, yet lighter banana bread, with a peanut butter twist.  They are easy to make, and easy to modify. If you have some canned pumpkin purée on hand, or leftover baked winter squash to use up, they can be used instead of the banana. Actually, that's Don's preference. In this post, I compare a few commercially available graham crackers to choose from––whether fully vegan, gluten-free, whole wheat, grain-free, or sugar-free––depending upon your priorities. I am sharing the original Graham Banana Squares recipe I recently 'dug up' pictured on the index card below (and where I recently found it) plus my updated version of the recipe, with variations. 

If you already have your favorite graham crackers on hand, skip ahead to the recipe.

 

Graham Crackers - Vegan, Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free or Budget Friendly

Whether you prefer graham crackers that are whole grain, fully vegan (meaning honey-free, egg-free, butter-free), gluten-free, sugar-free, or more budget conscious, there are a few options. Alternatively, you could make your own, but that requires another recipe, and extra steps.

Generally speaking, if you are a bit picky about the ingredients, as most of us likely are, the choice is typically between the following:

• Whole wheat versus unbleached wheat flour which is refined, meaning the bulk of the fiber and important vitamins has been removed, and 'enriched' with synthetic vitamins added back. 
• Gluten-free which for some may be necessary. If you are not celiac, then it's a choice as to what  ingredients are most appealing.  Gluten-free options usually rely on fibers, like oat fiber (used in Partake Classic Grahams), psyllium husks, flax seeds, etc., which can be drying, or cause digestive distress in some, and a variety of other ingredients to keep it gluten-free, such as almond flour, tapioca flour, sorghum flour, and others. 
• Sugar-Free graham crackers use alternatives to refined cane or beet sugar.  Many graham cracker brands use honey, some use honey and sugar. The Must Love Graham Crackers are sweetened with dates. Healing Home Foods Classic Graham Crackers are sweetened with maple syrup. 

Budget Friendly Graham Crackers

You'll find a budget-friendly graham crackers available at all commercial stores. Walmart Great Value brand is under $3.00 per box as of  arch, 2026. Here is the ingredient list, typical of most commercial brands. Of the two shown, Nabisco uses unbleached flour, Great Value doesn't. Nabisco uses palm oil, which I prefer to avoid, Great Value (GV) doesn't. GV contains TBHQ as one of their preservatives, which I would have to look up to see what is in it. Seed oils are not the health risk many make them out to be, however, commercial grade seed oils tend to have hexanes and bleaching agents, which are not good.

Sugar-Free Graham Crackers

Must Love Graham Crackers are made from unbleached flour, is enriched with synthetic vitamins, contains palm oil, 'natural flavor' which is from an unidentified plant source, but, hey, it is sweetened with dates. 

Healing Home Classic Grahams, shown below, are also sugar-free, gluten-free, and grain-free.

 Gluten-Free Graham Crackers

Partake Classic Grahams are 'free of several allergens.'  I made my first batch Vegan Graham Banana Squares with these. I enjoy the taste. They are free of honey, so they are vegan. That said, the Graham Squash Squares I made with these graham crackers and leftover baked winter squash instead of bananas had a dryer overall taste and texture, but were still good.

From the label: INGREDIENTS: Gluten Free Flour Blend (Sorghum Flour, Oat Flour), Sunflower Oil, Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Light Brown Sugar (Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Molasses), Water, Cane Syrup, Potato Starch, Vanilla Extract, Tapioca Starch, Sea Salt, Baking Soda, Monocalcium Phosphate, Cinnamon, Oat Fiber, Rosemary Extract, Sunflower

Healing Home Foods Baked Classic Graham Crackers are  gluten-free, grain-free, refined sugar-free and oil-free. They are sweetened with maple syrup, and made with almond flour. I wasn't aware of these until doing this research. I have not seen them available at local stores. 

The ingredients are very simple: Almond flour, maple syrup, sprouted almonds, cinnamon, Himalayan pick salt, and nutmeg. I may have to order these to give them a try! Again, being made with almond flour may make theVegan Banana Graham Squares a bit dryer, so I would make adjustments with the liquid ingredients. That said, their ingredient list is clean and healthy!

Pamela's is another gluten-free brand, but they are expensive, and not vegan.

Whole Wheat Graham Crackers 

Ingredients from Annie's Cinnamon Graham Crackers - Organic Whole Wheat Flour (graham flour), Organic Wheat Flour, Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Expeller-Pressed Sunflower Oil, Organic Honey, Leavening (baking soda, ammonium bicarbonate, cream of tartar), Organic Cinnamon, Organic Natural Flavor, Sea Salt, Organic Rosemary Extract.

I prefer these overall. Whole wheat is very nutritious, contrary to what many currently believe. The ingredients are organic, with better quality organic expeller-pressed sunflower oil - an oil native to the United States - with no other preservatives or problematic ingredients. The rub is that they are not technically vegan because they contain honey.  I made my second batch of Graham Banana Squares with these, which came out great.

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Here's the video recipe: 

The Story of The Original Graham Banana Squares Recipe - A Magical Year 

A couple years back I had to help my mom move into a different house in her assisted living community. She had some shelving filled with classic old cookbooks, her French language books, and decorative items that were in a living space off her bedroom, and would not be fitting in the new space. I packed up her Betty Crocker & Pillsbury Cookbooks to take home along with other items. They sat around for a while on my shelf. One day, I finally decided to sort through the pile of old clipped recipes that were stuffed inside her cookbooks. Some were handwritten, some were recipes from on old newspaper clippings. 

I quickly took out what I knew I wouldn't want, and eventually found a new home for the cookbooks.

The pile of clipped recipes ended up in a file in a basket, out of sight, and out of mind, until right before Christmas (2025). I was searching for my mom's very old, hand written Russian Tea Cakes recipe, one of my absolute favorite Christmas cookies that she would make, along with Rum Balls, and Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies. I made a vegan, sugar-free version of the Russian Tea Cakes a year or so before, and wanted to make them again as they came out sooo good! Just like mom's, only healthier!

While sifting through the recipes, I found this index card titled Graham Banana Squares.  I stared at it, having only a faint sense of having written that recipe to share with my mom, decades ago. You can see the aging of the index card with the slight browning around the edges. So, it's anyones guess as to the origin of that recipe! 

Without any source to contribute, I will share how I made this recipe, below. Be sure to read the recipe notes for some tips and variations. Or use this as a base recipe, and modify as needed. If using gluten-free grahams, I suggest adding ground chia or flax seeds, and more baking powder. I added a small amount of flour to my updated version, which can also be gluten-free if needed, or omitted.

Graham Banana Squares Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1&1/4 cup ground graham cracker crumbs (I used Partake for one batch, and Annie's for another)
• 1/2 cup wheat germ
• 1/4 cup white whole wheat flour, or flour of choice (new edition to recipe, see notes, below)
• 2 Tbsp. brown sugar, or sweetener of choice
• 1/2-1 tsp. cinnamon 
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda (I'd bump it up if you are using gf graham crackers, and want it cake-y)
• 1/4 tsp. sea salt
• 1 cup, or about 2 medium bananas, or use 1 cup mashed baked winter squash or canned pumpkin
• 4 Tbsp. PB2 peanut powder (see notes, below)
• 1 Tbsp. peanut butter (see notes, below)
• 1/4 cup apple juice or cider
• 2 Tbsp. apple butter (see recipe notes)
• 1 Tbsp. ground chia seeds, optional
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 Tbsp. light oil (I used Grapeseed oil) (or sub another tablespoon apple butter
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips (several vegan options including Ghirardelli, or  Enjoy Life Morsels made with rice milk, or Mini's, or Mega Chunks)

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350º F., and line an 8x8 square inch baking pan with parchment paper.
2. Grind graham crackers to get 1&1/4 cup, and place in mixing bowl. It's about 9 rectangles which have 2 squares each if using Annie's.
3. Add wheat germ, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon (more or less to your taste), baking soda and salt. Stir with a fork to combine.
4. In a separate bowl, mash the banana (or winter squash) and add peanut or almond butter, apple butter, chia seeds, vanilla and oil, if using. Stir to combine.
5. Add wet ingredients to dry, and stir until just combined. 
6. Pour batter into baking pan, and use the back of a spoon or rubber spatula to evenly distribute and smooth the top.
7. Top with chocolate chips.
8. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the top springs back when pressed with a finger and a toothpick comes out clean, aside from the melted yummy chocolate chips!
9. Let cool at least 10-15 minutes before cutting into 16 squares.

Nutritional Profile with recipe as above, minus the chia seeds

• Total calories per serving based on 16 squares: 111
• Protein = 3.1g
• Carbohydrates = 17.2g
• Fat = 3.6g
• Vitamin E =2.718 1/6 mg
• Contains B vitamins, a little choline, 31.5 mcg folate, vitamin A, C, Iron, 24mg Magnesium, .9mg Manganese, 145.4mg Potassium, .6mg Zinc, 133.4mg Sodium
• 1.6g fiber

These totals will change depending on if you add chia seeds, and use all peanut or almond butter or all PB2, and if you omit the oil.

Notes and Variations for Graham Banana Squares Recipe

1. Graham Squash, Pumpkin or Sweet Potato Squares: As previously mentioned, this recipe is as good, and to some perhaps better, when made using either previously baked winter squash, canned pumpkin purée or possibly orange-flesh sweet potato. Japanese and white sweet potatoes are denser and sweeter than orange flesh, which may be great as well, although the Graham Squares will be a different color. By the way, if you love sweet potatoes, you'll LOVE this Vegan, refined sugar-free Sweet Potato Pie recipe!
2. Peanut Butter v.  PB2:  Use all peanut or almond butter, all peanut powder, or a blend, as I did in the above recipe. If using PB2, reconstitute with apple juice or cider, or sub soy or nondairy milk.
3. Higher Protein: Sub the flour I added for a plant-based protein powder. However, as they can be drying, maybe add a little more liquid, apple butter, or banana. pumpkin or squash.
4. Baking Tip: I crumble up a piece of parchment paper that is a little bigger than the 8x8 baking pan. Crumbling it first helps it lay flatter. It should cover the sides and hang over the top rim a bit. You can alternatively cut 2 pieces to fit cross wise, leaving tabs over the rim to lift out the Graham Banana Squares once baked. Or, lightly oil or spray your baking pan.
5. Wheat germ: You can omit the wheat germ. Wheat germ is a great source of vitamin E and other nutrients, and it has a slight drying effect. If omitting, you may need to slightly adjust wet ingredients, such as 1 less tablespoon of apple butter.
6. Flour: I added flour to my updated Graham Banana or Squash Squares recipe because it gives it a slightly more cake-y texture. White whole wheat flour is as nutritious as regular or stone ground whole wheat with a lighter texture once baked. 
7. Oil: I like adding 1 tablespoon of oil (half of the original recipe) to the recipe to keep it moist. Omit if you avoid oils. Sub for the apple butter, or more nut butter, squash or pumpkin.
8. Apple Butter: If needing to sub the apple butter, apple sauce can work, but it's not the same density and  sweetness.  Another option is to use a pumpkin butter. 
9. Chocolate Chips: I sprinkle chocolate chips on top. Feel free to stir them into the batter. I used less than the original recipe, but add more if you prefer, or omit.
10. Dried fruit: If you want to, add raisins, or other dried fruit. I have not tried that yet, but I'm sure it would be fine. In fact, use this recipe as a base and experiment with varieties using what you have on hand. 

Here are some more healthier baked goods you may enjoy

2 Moist, Low-Fat Vegan Bran Muffin Recipes

Easy, Refined sugar-Free Vegan Sweet Potato Pie

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